


Found Me a Lover Who Can Play the Bass

by okayyhmm



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Muggle, Alternate Universe - Rock Band, Angst, Bisexual Remus Lupin, Bisexual Sirius Black, Eventual Romance, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gay Remus Lupin, Gay Sirius Black, James Potter is a Good Friend, M/M, Multi, No Smut, POV Sirius Black, Sirius Black & James Potter Friendship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-02
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-15 03:35:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,557
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29802342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/okayyhmm/pseuds/okayyhmm
Summary: Sirius is in a band. Remus plays bass. Sirius needs a bassist. What more can I say?New chapters coming soon, bookmark so that you can read them when they do!
Relationships: James Potter/Lily Evans Potter, Marlene McKinnon/Dorcas Meadowes, Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Comments: 1
Kudos: 17





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! Please bookmark or save this story for later if you think you'll enjoy it :)

Sirius Black was a cool guy. He was an _effortlessly_ cool guy. He could wear anything he wanted and still look cool. His voice was like a mug of warm-honey-and-lemon down your throat. He only had to look at woman to impregnate her. Every time he flipped his hair, someone fainted. His body was-

"Padfoot?" James stuck his head through the door and raised his eyebrow at Sirius posing in his full-length mirror.

Sirius rolled his eyes, annoyed that his morning routine was being interrupted. "Yes, Prongs?"

"We are leaving in fifteen minutes and I need your help getting the kit in the van,"

"Sure, whatever,"

James moved away from the door and down the hall, calling as he went: "And don't think I don't know what you were doing, Pads!"

"Can't a man have self-confidence in this day and age?" Sirius put his shirt back on, ran a hand through his hair, quick spray of cologne and he was ready and out of the door.

It was the thorn in Sirius' side (and ego) that he could not drive and instead had to rely on 'lifts', like he was a teenager. And so, with James at the wheel of the van, and Sirius in the passenger seat holding his guitar case like a baby, they set off towards the studio that they practiced in, the rest of the kit secured in the back. See, they called it a 'studio' but it was more a simple square room, in a row of many other square rooms, with a plastic table and some chairs. However the location was ideal - it was under a bridge that Sirius sometimes climbed up onto to look out at the North London view and find writing inspiration; it was also just 400m from a pub, which was definitely needed if a practice session had been somewhat rocky (no pun intended).

'The Marauders' was essentially James and Sirius' child. Ever since they'd met aged eleven at boarding school with a shared passion for thumping music and dreams of stardom, they knew they would be great together. They would sneak off at night to head to the music room and practice, or borrow CDs and lie on the floor listening to them for hours (only as long as they remembered to leave again before sunrise). 

James had found a natural pull to the drums, something Sirius had not initially understood - why would you want to be at the back, ignored, in the corner? That was until he'd seen James play, seen James' enthusiasm. With him playing, there was no way he could be ignored. He was that constant beat, constant rhythm throughout the whole set, pulling everyone together, keeping them in time. Without the drums, everyone else crumbled. Even if James was at the back of the school orchestra, the audience's eyes were drawn to him as his head focused on the instrument and he played melodiously, occasionally breaking out for solos that made the hairs on the back of listener's necks stand up in exhilaration.

Sirius hadn't settled down quite so easily. It was a secret that only James knew but Sirius flooded his feelings into writing songs, it was the only way he hadn't gone batshit crazy in his teenage years. He couldn't help practicing a little bit of each instrument, just enough that he could write an entire song complete with all the accompaniment without having to consult anyone - little bit of keyboard here, vocals, drums, occasionally a tambourine. In the end, it was the simple guitar that made him happiest - although perhaps 'simple' wasn't the right word to describe it. As soon as he'd gotten through the first couple of grades where he was having to play the acoustic music set from his music teachers, he explored the classic lead guitar solos of the 60s, 70s and onwards. Pretty soon he knew the entire discography of the most famous bands of the period, delighting the school music teacher Ms. McGonagall, who was so pleased there were people in the school who were actually passionate about music, even if that was James Potter and Sirius Black and even if that music was a little less Tchaikovsky and a little more Deep Purple.

'The Marauders' had been born, although at first it was just James on drums and Sirius on guitar and lead vocals. Not much for a band, hey? They survived through school orchestras and concerts, until eventually getting kicked off in Year 12 for diverting into solos that had definitely not been on the set list (although Sirius swore that McGonagall had been reluctant to do it). After that, they really focused on their vision. See, Sirius had never seen himself as anything but a famous rockstar, selling out stadiums, posing on the Rolling Stones Magazine. James was excited, too, sure, but James was good at many things. If the band failed, James would be fine. Sirius would not. 

So, Sirius supposed that is why he was so grateful that James had forgone a university degree or career and moved with Sirius into a dingy flat in North London so that they could be at the hub of the music scene (or rather, more of a music scene than the rolling countrysides of their boarding school). Cushioned with 'pocket money' from James' parents (who were basically Sirius' parents at this point), the boys held auditions for the band - bass guitar, keyboard, backing vocals. Before he'd learnt about music theory, Sirius had sullenly refused to accept another guitarist on stage. He didn't want to be overshadowed (not that that could be possible, Sirius always thought) but then he'd realised that that wasn't quite what the two guitarist roles were for - they were complimentary. They were there to weave and blend and, essentially, harmonise. However, those high expectations had possibly been why filling that role had been the hardest.  
At first, no one called up the number that they'd stuck onto cork boards everywhere they could, and they'd had to find the people themselves. 

The keyboard went to the barmaid at the pub next to their studio - her name was Marlene McKinnon and she had bright blonde hair that was usually tossed up in some carefree hairstyle (Sirius envied the ease in which she piled it up). She took no shit, having had to deal with the drunken tossers at the pub, and was perfect for the instrument. Her fingers were quick, her eyes laser-focused and she was not shy to speak up and let the boys know that their playing was off, or they missed a part. Sirius valued honesty, specifically. As for backing vocals, Marlene had a friend called Mary who had been trying to make it big at singing for years. She had the most beautiful, brown, really curly hair and wide brown eyes but her best feature was her smile, big and instantly welcoming. She'd previously only sung at her family's church so took a bit of time to get used to the Marauders's setlist... but her voice was like sweet honey and she was very good at knowing when backing vocals would be best used, working to integrate them at appropriate moments. 

As for bass guitar, well, the band had gone through a few people. They'd played a gig here or there with a few different people but none that had ever quite felt... right. Most recently they had had Peter Pettigrew, who they'd tried out mainly because his parents were old friends of the Potters. However, he had been an absolute shit-show. In the end, even he knew, and he quit out of respect for the band's sound (and after he'd zoned out during a gig and forgot to play for an entire song). He still showed up to practice occasionally, helping out and essentially acting as a roadie and the band let him, mainly because they felt sorry for the poor guy. However, his departure had left a keen void in the band that Sirius was desperate to fill. The almost two years since he'd left school and him and James had moved to London did nothing to quell his need for a bass guitarist that was completely and utterly perfect. Maybe that kind of player only existed in his dreams.

Lily had been on the band's backs about it, too, and was probably the only reason that the boys had felt motivated enough to put up leaflets and arrive to the studio at 9 in the morning for the five people who'd called up to audition. Lily Evans was the band's 'manager'. Really, she owned the studio and kind of adopted the band after they hadn't booked a gig and she got worried about her income. She was short, even shorter than Mary, but don't let that fool you - she was an absolute menace. Of course, James adored her. He'd always been a sucker for a woman that could put him in his place, which was something that happened often, especially when James forgot to hide his puppy-dog eyes every time the short red-head had visited the studio to remind them of a gig date. Lily mainly called up pubs, small events or parties and organised when they would play, using negotiation and persuasion to get them the best cut they could. In the beginning, it hadn't been enough and Sirius and James had worked as UberEats drivers, until eventually getting fired after getting high and forgetting to deliver the food a few too many times. However, at this point, they had a few steady gigs enough that all the members were buoyed even without jobs. Mary still sung a few solo gigs on her own, just to be able to try different kinds of music, and Marlene still worked at the pub (Sirius thought she partially enjoyed getting to vent her anger out on customers) but they didn't really need to. Course, they were nearing twenty-one now and no 'big break' had happened yet but there was still time, right? 

James pulled into the parking space opposite the studio and began to haul in the kit. Marlene was already leaning against the brick wall smoking a cigarette and did not offer any help, but then again, at this point, Sirius didn't expect her to. Mary was inside and had made coffee for each person, setting a mug at each person's seat, but was going through her vocal warmups. Even Lily had texted to say she was on her way, that she wanted to listen in on the auditions and offer any advice if they wanted her to (although Sirius thought she'd probably offer advice even if they didn't want her to). It was important that every member was present when trying out a new player. They had to blend with everyone.

So, the four of them sat in the cold room, sipping their coffee and waiting for the first person to turn up.

And then, they sat sipping a third coffee waiting for the last person to turn up. The previous four had been complete duds - one of them was sixteen and brandished a poorly made fake ID; another had forgotten their instrument but "couldn't be bothered" to go and get it; another had been critical of the songs, already trying to undermine Sirius and James' leadership and the fourth (who'd just left) had played too slowly, and was generally very unreceptive to advice. Sirius' hopes were not high for the fifth. As said earlier, the band had gone through a _lot_ of bass players. At this point, everyone knew that Sirius' judgement was the most important; he was the one who chose what songs they played, occasionally even getting the band to play an original song of his own, so knew exactly the type of sound that they needed. He'd also had high expectations for a bassist since he'd figured out why they were needed, again the reason that no player had ever quite been good enough.

"Let's hope the next one is our Cliff Burton, yeah?" James voiced the thoughts of everyone else. Sirius strummed his guitar sadly in agreement. 

There was a knock on the studio door and the members turned to see a figure open the door cautiously. "This the, er, Marauders?" 

The figure was easily 6'3, with a mop of tousled brown hair and subtle freckles across his nose. His smile (albeit a wary one) was crooked, showing teeth that were very lightly canine and pointed. He wore a thick maroon jumper that was pushed up to his elbows, exposing lightly tanned forearms and a thick metal cuff bracelet on one wrist; he also wore ripped black jeans and scuffed black boots, and when he moved to close the door, Sirius saw the glint of a few rings on each hand. Over his shoulder was a guitar case and Sirius saw the outline of a guitar pick through his jean pocket (not that Sirius was looking anywhere below the hips). 

"Yeah, yeah, come in," James stood up to welcome the man, filling in for Sirius who honestly felt a bit dazed by the very handsome stranger, who may also have a cartilage piercing. Sirius cleared his throat and busied himself with pretending to tune his guitar, his black hair falling in front of his face and hiding the red flush that had started to settle. Who the fuck was this guy to make Sirius Black blush? 

James continued to roll through the usual introductions that occurred, handing the man some sheet music and instructing the members to start at the top of the song that they had been using for the new players. Sirius gritted his teeth and began playing, picking at his strings simultaneously delicately and firmly, as was his usual way. The band played as well as they normally did, barring the _holy fuck_ beautiful accompaniment from the stranger (who's name Sirius had missed from his dazed state). Once the song had played, Sirius looked up to see small smiles of pleasure on the faces of the other members, although James' smile was not actually very small but was as wide as could be. Even Lily, sat in the corner, look pleased. They turned to Sirius, to see what he was thinking and Sirius turned to look at the stranger, appraising him. His face was blank, calm, unreadable, nothing indicating that he'd just played angelically. He stared back at Sirius, his hazel-green eyes cool and composed. This... irritated Sirius, for some reason.

"Move on to the second song," Sirius' voice was firm and James' eyebrow quirked in surprise but he immediately delved into the second song of their setlist, timing everyone in. And, again, the stranger's playing felt like a missing puzzle piece in the Marauders's sound, as if every song they had chosen had been chosen just for his playing. As the last chords played out, Sirius set his guitar down and bit his lip. At this point, Marlene was frowning and Sirius knew exactly why. The guy was perfect, everything they'd been hoping for, why didn't Sirius want to take him on?

"Welcome to the Marauders," He said finally, and the stranger's unreadable face broke out into a small, crooked smile.


	2. Chapter 2

James insisted on taking their new bandmate out for drinks to celebrate. The two brought up the front of the gaggle of people as they left the studio and walked down the road towards the pub, giving Sirius the opportunity to drop back and receive the vital intel he was looking for. 

"What did he say his name was?" He half-whispered to Marlene as she locked the studio's door.

"Remus Lupin," She drawled in response, hiking her bag higher over her shoulder. 

The two followed the rest of the group down the road, as Sirius rolled the name around in his mind.

"Careful, Black," Marlene said after a moment, but she was smirking knowingly. Sirius paused, confused, and turned to her, an eyebrow raised,

"What have I done now?"

"Oh, come on, as if I didn't notice you giving him heart-eyes as soon as he stepped through the door," Marlene grinned and she reached out and ruffled Sirius' hair. He scowled and pushed her hand off, continuing to walk.

"I did _not_ give him heart-eyes, I was studying him," Sirius huffed.

"Alright, alright, all I'm saying is we all remember the last bassist you 'studied', so be careful, we haven't had someone that good audition in a while," Marlene gave him a pointed look.

"I didn't go after Peter at all, for the record. Besides, the guy played two songs, and wasn't even that good," Sirius realised he was sounding petulant at this point.

"First of all, not going after Pete is not much of an achievement. Secondly, now I know you're lying," Marlene laughed. "I couldn't even see the guys' fingers, they were so quick on the chords. And he didn't even break a sweat,"

"Good, breaking a sweat after two songs? He'd smell foul after a gig," Sirius remarked dryly.

"It's an expression, Black," Marlene rolled her eyes. "After you," She opened the door to the grimy pub and beckoned Sirius in. Since she still worked there, she was always able to get the group the booths at the back, which had significantly less sticky tables (as well as staff discount on the drinks). The pub was dark, all hard-wood floors and spruce panelling; the walls were adorned with hot-glued beer mats and the occasional album cover. Sometimes Sirius found his eyes straying to the 'Hot Chili Peppers, Mother's Milk' poster for too long. 

"Alright, I'm gonna get the drinks. What do you think Lupin drinks? He a beer guy?"

"Get tequila," 

Marlene laughed but as Sirius turned away, he heard her ask for a round of shots in her usual drawling, casual way. Sirius turned the corner towards their table and slid in next to James, who was half-way through a conversation with Remus, waving his hands animatedly. However, James' eyes kept flicking across the table towards Lily (as usual), who seemed to be being... coached by Mary.

"Now put one 'x', just to flirt a little but not to sound _too_ interested, you know?" Mary said, nodding her head knowingly. Lily looked unconvinced but obliged anyway.

Sirius was feeling a bit sour from his conversation with Marlene. Sirius Black did _not_ 'make heart-eyes' to people. Sure, he checked people out, gave flirty looks but 'heart eyes' felt a little too... needy. Remus Lupin probably had people fawning over his playing all the time so was probably a massive diva, it would not do to have that fanned even more by thinking that Sirius was into him. Like, alright, fine, Sirius _was_ technically into him. I mean, the guy was tall and wore rings for fucks sake, but there was nothing that Sirius hated more than an inflated ego (ironic) and he could just _tell_ that this 'Remus Lupin' had one. What kind of name was 'Remus Lupin' in the first place?

Vindictive Sirius was never a good look, but he felt it bubbling slightly inside of him, particularly as James kept their conversation going and made no effort to involve Sirius.

"Ooh, Lily you flirting with someone then?" Sirius teased and he felt James shoot daggers at his side.

"She thought she was, until I got involved and told her that telling someone how to treat a headache was _not_ flirting," Mary piped up.

"He said his head hurt, I thought it would show I cared!" Lily insisted, her face burning slightly, giving it a rosy-pink hue (that reminded Sirius of a drunk James once declaring that his favourite colour was "Lily Evan's blush").

"She was really just copying and pasting NHS links," Mary shrugged. Sirius snickered in response.

"Well, what's his name? How'd you meet?" Sirius pressed.

"His name is Severus, and we met at the bank," Lily turned even redder.

Sirius couldn't help but frown infinitesimally, "Romantic," He said dryly. Mary laughed but quickly disguised it into a cough when Lily scowled at her,

"Meeting people organically is so hard these days, forgive me if I refuse to join Tinder," Lily protested. "Besides, you have no room to talk,"

"Hey, hey, I meet people 'organically' all the time!"

"Hooking up with each new bassist we get in and then fucking it up so they have to leave is not the same thing," Lily said before pausing, noticing that Remus was listening, and flushing red. "Not that that happens every time, and, you know, probably won't happen this time..." She trailed off.

"Don't worry, definitely won't happen," Remus said smirking. Sirius scowled slightly, he would be lucky to have the _opportunity_ of that happening.

"Cheer up, Black, there's always Mary's friends," Marlene said brightly as she set some drinks down on the table.

"Absolutely not, my cousin is still scarred," Mary pushed in.

"Scarred? What do you do to them?" Lily giggled.

"Please, we never even slept together, she was just with me when Walburga came round," Sirius rolled his eyes and reached forward to grab a shot. The group quieted immediately and as Sirius threw the shot down the back of his throat and reached for another, he saw a few side-glances from around the table.

"Alright, now that we are done slut-shaming Pads," James interrupted the awkward pause. "Here's to 'The Marauders'!" He lifted up a drink and everyone else followed, crashing glasses together. Across the table, Remus was staring at Sirius and he threw back back the shot without even a grimace. 

As the group got drunker, the sky darker and the mood more frantic, a Sirius Black meltdown was somewhat inevitable - romantic rejection (sort of), mention of his family, the feeling of an 'intruder' in the group, alcohol and there was also a cute blonde who had been shooting Sirius looks the entire night. Once the group had moved to the 'dance floor' (a.k.a. even stickier section of the floor that was in front of the speakers), the guy gravitated towards Sirius, who had already resolved to prove just how much he had _not_ been shooting Remus 'heart eyes'. And so, to the tune of early 2010s hits, Sirius leaned in and kissed the blonde, who he had not even bothered to ask their name. Sirius hoped Remus was watching. He hoped he was paying very, _very_ close attention.

\--<>\---

"Relax, I'm here," Sirius slid into the practice room.

"And in yesterday's clothes, classy, Black,"

"Save it, Marls, maybe I thought the outfit was too good for just one day?"

"Well, I wouldn't know why you would think that..." Marlene bit back, smirking, looking him up-and-down. God, Sirius loved Marlene.

James clapped his hands for attention. "Alright, now that Sirius is here-" Sirius bowed dramatically. "-we are going to go through the stuff slowly so that we can work Remus in. That sound good?"

Everyone nodded and took their places on their 'stage'- Sirius front and centre, as usual; James at the back and slightly to the left; Marlene left-front; Mary right and slightly back and then Remus front-right. Sirius watched him slowly stalk up to his place and wipe down the front of his guitar, but when Remus looked up, he glanced away quickly. They did as James had said and went slowly, but it wasn't necessarily needed. Remus kept up the whole time, his playing providing the rhythmic support that the bassist needed to provide, and he was... meticulously correct. Sirius didn't think he slipped up even once. In the practice sessions that had happened since the last bass guitarist, the sound was empty and timing was so much harder to keep up with. Sirius could feel the excitement of his bandmates as the colourful sound streamed out through the speakers. 

After a couple hours, when Sirius' voice had started to go hoarse from singing, and his fingers red and sore from the guitar-strings, James finally called time with a celebratory crash of the cymbals. 

"That was great! Remus, you're amazing, thank you so much," James was breathless and his smile wide.

Remus dipped his head modestly, "Thank you for letting me be here," 

Sirius turned away and began to pack his guitar away, filing his picks into a zipped section, when he felt James walk up behind him.

"Pads..." 

"Prongs..." Sirius mimicked his tone of voice as he turned around and noticed James' apologetic head tilt.

"Lily asked me to come over after practice and fill her in, so I won't be driving home..."

Sirius sighed. "Prongs, it's okay, I do know how to use Uber,"

"No need," Remus appeared by the two men's sides suddenly. "I can drive you, if you want. Where abouts are you?"

"No, no, it's okay, I can-" Sirius started.

"Great!" James said brightly. "Don't want Sirius losing any equipment in a taxi,"

Sirius rolled his eyes. "I wouldn't just lose-"

"And the address is-" James interrupted again as he began to reel off the address of his and Sirius' flat. Sirius sighed and accepted defeat, packing the rest of his stuff up. He then let Remus lead him to a small, red car that was parked next to where the van had been, had James not driven off a minute earlier (desperate to see Lily, Sirius supposed). Remus put his own equipment into the backseat before taking Sirius' and fitting his in too. Sirius watched, fascinated, as the lifting of the amps and guitars made the veins in Remus' arms more prominent, before shaking his head in annoyance at himself for staring too long. Maybe Marlene hadn't been too wrong with 'heart-eyes'... He got into the passenger-seat and Remus followed soon after, starting the car and beginning to drive towards Sirius' flat. They sat in silence for a moment, Sirius too stubborn to start the conversation himself before he eventually relented, accepting that an awkward silence was even worse,

"How long have you been playing then?" He said, his tone light.

"Since I was about five," Remus said, his eyes unmoving from the road ahead.

"Five?" Sirius said surprised, although he supposed it made sense. No one got that good from just a few years.

"Yeah, my old man taught me," Remus replied. "You?"

The fact that Remus cared enough to ask in return was nice. Then Sirius mentally slapped himself for praising the _bare fucking minimum of conversation courtesy._

"Eleven," Sirius said. "When I started secondary,"

"Same as James then," 

"That's how we met," Sirius explained. 

"Hmm," Remus replied, somewhat absently, as if he didn't even care. Sirius scowled and angled himself more towards the window, and away from Remus.

They sat in more silence for another few minutes. Remus made no moves to restart the conversation, and the only sound was the occasional flicker when Remus used the car-indicators. It started to rain softly, and Sirius watched the raindrops running down the windows, and he softly reached out a finger to follow one of them down. However, he drew back his hand abruptly when a light chuckle emitted from Remus' throat and he turned sharply to see him watching him.

"Don't let me interrupt you," 

Sirius rolled his eyes in response but his cheeks burned slightly from embarrassment.

"Bass guitar is important, you know," Sirius said after another moment. "Can't fuck it up, it'll fuck the rest of us up,"

"Guess I won't fuck up then?" Remus replied quickly, smirking to himself. Sirius frowned.

"The bass guitar and lead guitar relationship is important, too, you know. Gotta co-operate," Sirius said somewhat shortly.

"Actually, that's bass guitar and drummer," Remus said. 

"What?"

"Bass guitar and drummer. I mean sure, we do have to co-operate, but they're the ones that work closely together, all that 'locking in together' stuff,"

"That's not-"

"I have a degree in Music," Remus interrupted. Sirius' scowl deepened.

"And I've been studying music since pre-teen," Sirius snapped. "I think I know this,"

"Go on, have a look," Remus waved a hand towards Sirius' phone. Sirius quickly grabbed his phone and opened safari. After a moment, he reluctantly replaced his phone into his pocket.

"Well?" Remus said, his tone slightly mocking. 

"Must be a new thing," Sirius crossed his arms childishly. 

"Mhm," Remus sounded like he was stifling a laugh and Sirius resigned that he _definitely_ did not like this guy.

"You can't have a music degree, you look about eighteen," Sirius said, cattily.

"Twenty," Remus corrected. "And I only just finished, I was moved up a year,"

"Where from? The University of Bedfordshire?"

Remus laughed. "Nope, Cardiff,"

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Music degree seems a waste,"

"You know, I've thought that occasionally until I'm validated by correcting people on stuff like the role of the bassist,"

Sirius glared at Remus. "You know I'm in charge of the band, right? I could just kick you out?"

"Go ahead," Remus glanced at Sirius through the car mirror and held his eye contact. "I dare you,"

Sirius opened his mouth before closing it again. Remus snickered and returned his gaze to the road. 

"You're very arrogant," was all Sirius said finally.

"Nice of you to look for our similarities," Remus said sarkily as he rounded the corner of Sirius' road. "But some of us have more of a reason to be,"

Sirius widened his eyes. "I have no reason to be arrogant? As if I didn't found a successful band at the age of eighteen that you have just tagged onto?"

"A 'successful band' that can't seem to keep a bassist," Remus parked outside of Sirius' flat and turned to look at him, his expression unreadable. "Your bandmates may have been joking but I heard the undertone. They blame you for that, don't they?"

Sirius gaped.

"Maybe it's actually you who should be begging _me_ not to quit," Remus held Sirius' gaze. 

"If I told them what a cocky asshole you are, I'm sure they'd understand," Sirius clenched his jaw.

"Alright," Remus got out the car and Sirius followed. "Go ahead. Kick me out,"

"You are out of the band. We won't see you at practice tomorrow," Sirius said stiffly. Remus pulled Sirius' equipment out of the car and pushed it into his arms.

"Goodbye, Sirius," Remus merely smiled. "Pleasure to meet you,"

Sirius scoffed and walked up to his front door, not even glancing behind him as heard the car drive off. 

**you would not even believe the fucking conversation I just had**

He typed quickly to James as he pushed into his flat and put the equipment down in the hall.

_with Remus? I'm heading home now_

James' reply was quick.

**yes, I kicked him out**

James called him immediately.

"Pads, what the fuck? You kicked him out?"

"Look, just listen-"

"That guy can slice each one of your toes off and then spit on you and I would still want to keep him, we haven't had anyone half as good since, well-"

"Prongs, he basically told me I was a shit player and all of you hate me,"

"What did he actually say?" James knew Sirius too well not to know about his dramatics.

"Okay, okay, I called him arrogant, he called me arrogant back but said that I had no reason to be arrogant, and that you are all bitter about every bassist leaving! Just because he's got a fucking music degree from Cardiff at the age of twenty..."

"Well..."

"Prongs, don't you fucking dare,"

"Look, Pads, we all love you, you know that, but the band has been absolute shit recently. Even Peter at bass was better than none, and Remus is good. Like really good. It would be hard for the guy to _not_ be arrogant. Pads, you know that you are an amazing player. We all think so. But just... swallow your pride this one time?"

"I cannot believe-"

"Lily is ecstatic, I showed her a video of practice today and she literally hugged me, she was so happy. Do you know how happy Lily has to be to hug me? Besides, she's booked us to play at a party this Saturday and we can't go ahead without a bassist,"

"We can find another one. Any other bassist,"

"None that will catch up quick enough,"

"He's been in the band two days and you are taking his side?"

"I'm not taking anyone's side, Padfoot, I'm taking the band's side. Think about what is best for 'The Marauders'," 

Sirius gritted his teeth.

"And I want you to apologise to him," James said after a moment.

"Apologise? Are you mad?"

"I know it's hard, I'm sorry, but he's amazing. We need him. Please?"

"I'll think about it,"

"You do that,"

Sirius hung up the phone and swore loudly. His ego was so bruised and battered it felt like he'd stepped out on the A1 and just been repeatedly run over. Or that he'd walked into a Waitrose, declared that he voted for Labour and then just let the horde of middle-class shoppers attack. 

But... unfortunately, James was right. The band was Sirius' baby, his pride and joy, and there was little he wouldn't do to make it successful. He typed out quickly, using the number that had been added to 'The Marauder's' group chat:

**I'm sorry. See u tomorrow.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Would anyone be interested in a playlist of the kinds of songs that I imagine 'The Marauders' would play / be inspired by?


End file.
